53 Chapter Fifty-Two
◎Yu Jinyang, you're actually a cunning and malicious person at heart.◎
...
The atmosphere inside wasn't particularly warm, with a dim light illuminating a corner of the living room sofa. The two sat on the carpet in the middle, lazily propping their elbows up against the sofa cushions, occasionally leaning in for a kiss before simultaneously resting their heads on the cushions, idly playing with each other's hair and ears.
Yu Jinyang's ears were unusually red, and he said it was because they were hot. Then he buried his face in the sofa cushion, turned over, and wouldn't let her touch them.
Unfortunately, he has ears on both sides.
Li Yingqiao, preoccupied with touching his other ear which was burning hot, teased him, saying, "Yu Jinyang, do you want to take a shower? You're all sweaty." He mumbled, "I'll shower when I get back. I don't have any clean clothes to change into."
Li Yingqiao said, "I have some."
He was taken aback, then pulled his head up from the sofa and glared at her: "Men's style?"
"Mmm."
The room fell silent. Outside, someone was pulling down the roller shutter, a familiar background sound they often heard in their childhood in the small art city. Back then, they never imagined they would be in this situation, that their lips would still be warm and moist from kissing, and that they would hear that familiar sound of the roller shutter being pulled down. But Yu Jinyang had no time to pay attention. He didn't speak, his gaze burning into hers, his Adam's apple bobbing.
Li Yingqiao poked his cheek with her finger: "Yu Jinyang, what kind of look is that? Why are you being so fierce?"
Yu Jinyang pulled her finger over, pretending to bite it, and said, "That's what you call fierce."
She laughed: "You dog!"
Do you live alone most of the time in Beijing?
“Yeah.” Li Yingqiao poked his face again with her finger. “But I travel a lot for work, so I hang a few men’s shirts on the balcony when I go out, just in case someone breaks in. Are you going to wash them or not?”
He subconsciously lowered his head and sniffed himself. "Do I smell?"
Of course not. Yu Jinyang smelled wonderful, very fresh and clean, without any artificial fragrances or chemicals. From this, Li Yingqiao could almost conclude that he neither smoked nor drank much, conforming to the natural rhythm of working at sunrise and resting at sunset. He didn't go out fooling around, so he naturally avoided any impurities. In fact, self-discipline is the best nourishment.
“No. I’m afraid you’ll get hot,” she said, tugging at his ear.
“Then I won’t wash.” He held her hand, shook his head and smiled, “I really won’t wash. I have to go back and wash. Ice Cream Cone makes sure I shower every day, otherwise she’ll drive me crazy.”
"...Ice cream cone sounds like a little devil."
Yu Jinyang suddenly remembered: "Haven't you seen her yet?"
"Yeah, I've been really busy lately. Once I'm less busy, can you bring the ice cream cone out so I can play with it for a while?"
“Then she could punch you in the shit.” He emphasized the word “shit.”
Li Yingqiao laughed out loud, obviously not understanding: "What are you talking about?"
He smiled, and neither of them spoke for a moment. Li Yingqiao's eyes were fixed on him, and her hand involuntarily lifted the hem of his T-shirt and slipped inside, only to be grabbed again by him through the fabric. Yu Jinyang lazily propped one leg up on the sofa behind the carpet, his posture seemingly casual and relaxed, but his body was actually very tense, the veins on his arms bulging restrainedly, his gaze fixed on her, silently and firmly uttering a few words: "No, friend."
Li Yingqiao was just teasing him and didn't push her luck. She cupped his face and said solemnly, "Okay, friend."
Yu Jinyang's expression turned serious for once. He reached back and cupped the back of her head, lowering his head again, his breath unsteady. Their kiss was like frogs being slowly boiled in water—quiet and restrained, a few moments of kissing followed by a long, intimate conversation. Then, naturally, they would capture each other's lips, focusing intently on the kiss. Sometimes Li Yingqiao would lean in first, and he would lower his head in tacit agreement. Sometimes Yu Jinyang would bend down first, and she would instinctively meet his gaze. They spent the entire night like two fish frolicking in shallow water.
Yu Jinyang wasn't sweating at that time, but he was drenched in sweat when he left. After going downstairs and getting back to his car, he glanced at his reflection in the rearview mirror and wondered if Li Yingqiao had put paint on her lips? It was impossible to wipe off.
He sat in his car, ordered a bottle of makeup remover, and casually checked online—March 15th really was the God of Wealth's birthday, though he didn't really believe it. He tossed his phone back into the armrest box with such force he didn't even realize it until he got home and checked his phone to find the screen cracked. What do you call this? Losing both your money and your life, right?
Li Yingqiao took a shower and applied her skincare products. Actually, it had been quite a while since she'd done so much skincare. Touching Yu Jinyang's face, her skin was so good it shocked her, making her feel inferior. Even more surprisingly, she fell asleep without sleeping pills one night. Perhaps it was because she was starting to seriously consider her relationship with Yu Jinyang; indeed, emotional relationships were her weakest point, and thinking about them made her sleepy.
Perhaps she was always trying to avoid facing Uncle Yu. Would he still accuse them of repaying kindness with enmity or being ungrateful? Compared to herself, she couldn't accept her mother being looked down upon. Sure enough, even though she fell asleep without sleeping pills, her sleep was restless. She dreamt that Fourth Brother was so angry with them that he hopped away on one leg like a spring.
***
The next day, Li Yingqiao had just arrived at her office when she received a call from a travel agency before being called away by Wang Wenxiang. Clearly, Li Lianfeng had started his roundabout approach by contacting her the previous night.
Wang Wenxiang sat down and, after circling around the bush for a while, said, "Recently, many friends have sent me Xiaohuacheng's promotional videos. It seems that the promotions you did with those KOC matrixes that you contacted before were quite good. Boss Zhang told me that your performance in Convey's brand department was outstanding. However, this is not Beijing. In many situations, we should leave each other some room for maneuver, okay? You are still young, don't be too aggressive."
After reporting the work arrangements for the next two months to her, Li Yingqiao got straight to the point: "Pan Xiaoliang and I will continue to follow up on the customer flow reports of Xiaohuacheng during this period, and develop a user profile system as soon as possible, striving to achieve precise traffic targeting by the end of the month. There are many holidays in the second half of the year, including Christmas and New Year's Eve. This is not aggressive; I'm already being very conservative. Some opportunities, once missed, are gone forever."
Wang Wenxiang looked at Li Yingqiao, who was not yet thirty. But the confidence and mastery she exuded were rare for someone her age.
She inevitably thinks about herself at this time, what she is doing, and what achievements she has made.
She may have had many glorious moments, but at twenty-eight, she certainly didn't have Li Yingqiao's confidence. She always pursued perfection and adhered to the principle of not offending anyone. Occasionally, she would say some flattering words, which she felt were harmless.
She said, "I don't think you don't understand what I'm saying. Do you have time tonight? Let's have dinner together and talk. I've had some family troubles lately, otherwise, I'd been meaning to treat you to a meal since you took office, but I haven't had a chance."
Li Yingqiao smiled frankly: "It's my responsibility to treat you, but I asked Sister Xiang. She says she has too many social engagements these days, so let's cut back on those between colleagues. Eliminating unnecessary formalities will save a lot of time. I did just have a business dinner with a travel agency tonight. Besides, I mean it sincerely. I believe you also feel awkward about these social obligations, right? Otherwise, you wouldn't have waited until now to say you'd treat me to dinner."
"Just tell Li Lianfeng. I'm not really interested in his messy accounts. As long as he fixes the holes that need fixing, I'm not that unreasonable. Of course, the premise is that he doesn't make things difficult for people he shouldn't make things difficult for. Otherwise, I can't guarantee that I might do something crazy."
When Li Lianfeng found Wang Wenxiang yesterday, she was still confused and asked several questions, asking if he had made a mistake, why Li Yingqiao was making things difficult for him, and why he was being asked to cover up these problems. At this critical moment, Li Lianfeng stopped hiding it and told her that he had indeed put people in a difficult position, and that the old man probably didn't know they had let a wolf into the house.
Wang Wenxiang then learned the whole story. She had heard of Yu Renjie's name before. He was once a famous wood king. Li Boqing had said that he was born with wealth. He himself didn't really know how he made his money, and he was probably also clueless about how he lost it later.
Wang Wenxiang knew that he had been featured in many photos of Yu Renjie in the Fengtan Daily more than a decade ago. When she used the photos to wallpaper her walls, she specifically chose the one with Yu Renjie in it because he was handsome.
"When will Yu Renjie's case go to trial?" Wang Wenxiang was a smart woman. She thought for a moment and said, "If needed, I can help you find a lawyer. Do you trust me?"
That must be Zhang Zongxie's team, after all, they are the go-to legal team for unscrupulous capitalists, a veritable meat grinder in the courtroom, and they are involved in some legal revisions.
Li Yingqiao still said thank you: "No need. Just ask Sister Xiang, you can pass on my message."
Wang Wenxiang rarely had such moments. When encountering someone like Li Yingqiao, it was hard not to be led astray by her logic, because she was so efficient in getting things done.
Wang Wenxiang always felt that her soul had decayed from the accumulation of her work. Having seen countless young people, she didn't think youth was anything special; instead, she felt a deep sense of sorrow. She lamented their futures because no matter how vibrant or passionate they were at the moment, they would eventually become like her, decaying souls.
She was rarely moved by young people. But Li Yingqiao's decisive and straightforward way of living suddenly gave her an idea—could she live like her?
Say no to Li Lianfeng. Tell the leaders to get out. Then go to hell with his system, go to hell with his social niceties, go to hell with his perfect woman.
But she couldn't; she had two mouths to feed at home. After her moment of mental satisfaction, she smiled and said to Li Yingqiao, "Alright, since that's the case, I won't force you. I'll talk to Li Lianfeng about it."
It was 3 PM. After Li Yingqiao finished writing her work report and sent Zhang Zongxie's three questions to his email address, she suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to tell Yu Jinyang.
She picked up her phone and sent a WeChat message to 321—
"[Speaker emoji] An important announcement! An important announcement! An important announcement!"
"I have a business dinner with a travel agency tonight, so I won't be home for dinner. Congratulations, you still don't need to cook today."
"But Yu Jinyang, I'm becoming more and more curious about your cooking skills."
The reply came quickly: "Okay. Drink less, but next time I start something like this, I'll block you, Li Yingqiao. I thought Gao Dian had another episode and I was the one who messed with him."
Just as Li Yingqiao was about to reply, a voice message popped up. She turned on the speakerphone and answered immediately in a cheerful voice, "What is it? Young Master Miao, what are your orders?"
Yu Jinyang sat in the car, watching the stream of people filing out of the window. He dangled one arm out the window, beckoned to a familiar head, and gestured for him to get in first. Then he said to the person on the other end of the phone, "Do you want to bring Taihe with you when you're drinking tonight? I haven't seen anyone in Fengtan who can outdrink him yet. In the past, when Li Lianfeng had some social engagements he couldn't handle, he would pay him to come."
Li Yingqiao's eyes lit up: "Great! Then you tell Sun Taihe. I was just wondering who to take with me."
Yu Jinyang unlocked the car, greeted the person with a glance, and continued his phone call: "How about I keep you company later? Do you have enough people? I have a few more here."
After saying that, he glanced at the guy next to him.
The guy sat up straight and said, "I'm a lawyer, I don't drink with people. Unless you pay me my lawyer's fees."
"You've really become my HR manager," she said with a smile. "It's okay, Sun Taihe is enough. I'll bring Pan Xiaoliang along. I think I hear someone talking. Where are you?"
"The high-speed rail station," Yu Jinyang said, "I'm picking up a friend."
Li Yingqiao said, "A lawyer? I just heard about lawyer fees."
“Friend, you’re a bit too sensitive about money.” Yu Jinyang chuckled, glancing sideways at his friend in the passenger seat. “I’m hanging up now, he’s glaring at me. I’ll have Taihe call you later.”
Li Yingqiao didn't hang up for a while, so Yu Jinyang waited until she did, then confirmed with her again on the other end of the phone, "Hmm? Li Yingqiao, is there anything else?"
Yu Jinyang rarely hung up on her first; he usually waited for her to hang up before doing so, because she would always suddenly remember something. Back in their senior year of high school, when they would talk on the phone and review their notes, she was always like that—one second she'd say she was going to hang up, and the next she'd suddenly remember a question she wanted to ask. Several times, after he interrupted her, she would suddenly blurt out two words, leaving Yu Jinyang helpless to call back and laugh, saying, "Li Yingqiao, you're really funny. You always wait for me to hang up before you talk, right?"
She was very sorry, but she didn't mean it. So, in almost all of Yu Jinyang's subsequent phone calls with her, he waited for her to hang up on her own.
Li Yingqiao wanted to suggest that Zhang Zongxie's legal team be given a try, since they were a capitalist's meat grinder and he was quite reliable in this area. However, her friend was sitting right next to her, so she couldn't say anything and simply hung up the phone.
After Yu Jinyang hung up the phone, the rising star in the legal profession next door stared at him with an unusual expression for a long time before letting out a meaningful but short "tsk".
“…What are you tsk about?” He started the car and tossed the cracked phone back into the glove compartment.
This rising star in the legal profession said, "Do you remember that time you called me in the middle of the night? You said you wanted to discuss with me whether sexual partners constitute a common-law marriage in a legal sense?"
Yu Jinyang: "...Did you get a ghost call?"
The other person landed a heavy punch on his shoulder and arm, and Yu Jinyang finally couldn't help but laugh out loud: "So, does that count?"
"Screw you."
"Depend on."
"And what do you rely on?"
"The old man forgot to turn. I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you, lawyer, to walk a few steps later."
"Yu Jinyang, I believe you're hiding something. You're actually a wicked person at heart."
[Author's Note]
See you the day after tomorrow!
Three hundred red envelopes.
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